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Author Notes: This recipe was inspired by my mother's friend who made this recipe often. She was a Spanish/French teacher and a wonderful cook. I was always so in awe of her because the way she cooked seem so exotic to me as a child. I made a few adaptions with the ingredients, but find the flavors of this dish take me right back to that feelings of awe I had as a child. - ashley_samuel_pierson —ashleychasesdinner

Food52 Review: This is a paella with the perfect balance of flavors. Rich, moist rice; spicy chorizo and shrimp with just the right amount of heat; and the hint of smokiness from the paprika work together to make this a delicious dish. Beautiful to entertain with! - Jennifer —The Editors

Serves 8

8 chicken legs

1pound extra large shrimp - deveined and shells removed

1pound chorizo sausage

1teaspoon Spanish smoked paprika

3 medium tomatoes - chopped

8 cloves garlic- minced

6cups chicken stock

1/2teaspoon saffron threads- crumble threads and add to a few onces of hot water to release flavor and color

6tablespoons dry white wine

2tablespoons fresh lemon juice

approx. 1/2 cups Olive oil for stir frying ingredients

1 red bell pepper- cut into 1 inch strips

1 green bell pepper- cut into 1 inch strips

2 1/2 cups Spanish short grain rice, or Arborio rice

1 bay leaf

2 scallions- chopped

1/2 cup fresh or thawed frozen peas

1teaspoon ground black pepper

chopped parsley for garnish

Accompaniment: fresh lemon wedges

Once shrimp are deveined and shells removed, sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Set aside.

Roast chicken legs in 450 degree oven until legs reach at internal temp of 160 degrees. Once done, set aside.

In a small bowl, sprinkle paprika over chopped tomatoes.

In a seperate small bowl, mix minced garlic with 1 teaspoon sea salt. Make paste consistency.

Bring stock to a simmer in a 3 quart sauce pan, cover and keep at a bare simmer.

In a seperate small bowl, mix together wine, saffron ( and liquid), and lemon juice.

Add olive oil to paella pan over moderately high heat and stir fry chorizo sausage for 8 minutes or until done. Transfer to platter.

Add shrimp, stir frying in pan for 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a platter with sausage.

Measure hot stock to ensure it measures 6 cups, add water if necessary.

Stir stock, wine mixture, and bay leaf into rice.

Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly but gently. Look for rice to appear more on surface, and when the spoon would leave a path exposing the bottom of the pan when pulled through the mixture. ( About 5 to 7 minutes)

Remove pan from heat and stir in shrimp, chorizo sausage, scallions, peas, black pepper and a pinch of salt. Lay chicken legs decoratively around on top.

Bake, uncovered at 450 degrees, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Look for edges to form a golden crust and almost all liquid to be absorbed.

Take pan from oven and cover with tin foil. Let stand for 10 minutes. The rice continues to cook and will be perfectly cooked.

Hi Shaya,
Thanks for your question. I hesitated to give an exact time because of my oven. So I began checking at the 30 minute mark. I left my legs in for another fifteen to twenty minutes. I would say most ovens would fall in that range of 35 to 45 minutes. If Santa could bring me anything I wanted for Christmas, it would definitely be a new oven!! I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.